February 26, 1924.
My dear Miss Addams:
This is a tardy reply to your letter but my explanation is almost continued absence from New York since its receipt. The office, however, did send you a copy of my letter to Miss Julia Lathrop, and you have since had a report of the minutes of our Trustee Meeting, containing reference to the conference with Miss Abbott.
I am sure you will be glad to know that so far as we can discover, there is complete harmony among the representatives of the twenty of more organizations and all hands are working together to promote the pending bill.
A justification of our position has become obvious, as practically every question in either the Senate or House Committee Conferences has brought out the fact that the chief obstacle in the way of this Amendment is the fear of interference with State sovereignty. If we were promoting a bill which would make it impossible to assure these questioners that the power of the States to pass child labor laws and administer them would be preserved, it is evident that it ↑would↓ stand very poor chance of getting passed, and if it did pass Congress, it would never get any farther.
As to your resignation from the Board of Trustees, I must say very frankly that I should consider it a calamity. I realize that you are at such a distance and so crowded with your many other duties that you have had little time to give to this and probably will not have much time during the next year or so, but your presence on the Board is so valuable an endorsement that we cannot afford to lose it at this critical time. Of course, I cannot urge you to continue if our procedure in the matter of the Amendment has robbed us of your confidence, but the whole case seems so clear to those of us who have studied the matter from the inside, that I cannot believe this has occurred [page 2] and I know of nothing else in our administration or policies that could have had such an effect.
So I am venturing to urge that you do not press the matter further as you say in your letter that you are willing to continue to the end of the present year -- then let us take the subject up anew, if you still feel at that time that you must discontinue. The whole question of our relation to other organizations in the matter of the Amendment will be ancient history by that time, so that the question of your continuance can be discussed by us [wholly] apart from it.
May I add that personally your life and connection with us had been so deep and abiding an inspiration to me that I should feel that your resignation from the Board was depriving me of the atmosphere I need to breathe.
Faithfully yours,
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